Means for size measuring shoes



Feb. 19, 1935. E. J. BLISS 'MEANS FOR SIZE MEASURING SHOES Filed June 27, 1929 9 jafiormey Patented Feb. 19, 1935 MEANS FoasIzE MEASURING s'HoEs' Elmer J.Bliss, Boston, Mass, assignor to Regal Shoe Company, Whitman, Mass, a corporation 7 of Massachusetts Application June 27, 1929, Serial No. 374,093 7 8 Claims.

This invention relates to the boot and shoe art and is intended to provide means for'conveniently, reliably and accurately determining I or ascertaining the size measurements .of :any shoe after it has been removed from the last on which it is made. I

There is "such a considerable variationin the indicated measurements of lasts supplied to shoe manufacturers as to lead to much uncertainty about the actual width and length measurements marked on shoes in the hands of. dealers. It is the object of the present invention to provide means by which the correct size measurements of any shoe may be ascertained in order to check up with the size indicia marked on said shoe, or supply an accurate marking where none is present.

In general the invention embraces a footform comprising a forepart divided into separate side members adapted to gauge against the opposite ball portions of the forepart and a heel member or block adapted to abut against the heel or counter of the shoe when the device is I inserted in the shoe for taking measurements thereof, combined with expanding means associated with a width-size scale which indicates the Width-size of the shoe into which the device is inserted when the side members are expanded into gauging contact with opposite ball portions of the shoe. A further feature of the invention resides in the combination ofa divided forepart wtha toe extension member by which the number of length-size extensions present in the shoe being tested may be accurately determined. These and other features of the'invention will be explained in thefollowing specification and will be defined in the claims hereto annexed. In the accompanying drawing I-have illus- 40 trated a concrete form of device embodying the principles of this improvement, in which Fig, "1 is, a longitudinal section along the plane of division" of the forepart showing the assembled device in the position the partswould assume when inserted in ashoe.

the device; a

Fig. 3 is a rear elevation of the forepart of the device. 4 Fig. 4 is a cross section on the plan of sectional line 4-4 01; Fig.1. 1

Fig. 5 is a detail viewshowing in vertical secton the'means for adjustng the toe extension member. Fig. 6 is a detail view illustrating the toe ex- Fig. Z'is" a bottom plan view of the forepart of tension positioning screw with the length-size scale thereon.

In the practice of this invention I employ a sectional foot-form which, in. assembled .rela- 'tion, corresponds generally in contour, and in 5 width and length, with a human foot of known size. This foot-form embracesa forepart comprising inside and outside members 1 and 2 suitably connected together to permit a sufficient range of lateraloexpansion to correspond with any of the normal width-sizes used in shoemaking from the narrowest to the widest width. In the specific form shown the two side members are interconnected by means of transversely slidablerack bars 5 insertedin aligned transl verse'bores formed in, the two' side members. 7 These rack bars are secured fixedly to the side member 2 in any suitable way as by a fastening pine, While theother end of each rack bar telescopes into the bore of the opposing side 4, member-'1. I a l Secured to the vertical face of the side member 1 is a plate 6 which, provided with hearing lugs 6 form a bearing for the expanding or adjusting shaft ,7 extending longitudinally in the space between the two side members; These lugs 6 v form lateral abutments limiting the collapsing or drawing together movement of the two side members at a predetermined width corresponding to the width of the narrowest stand- 3 ard width measurement for the length of foot that the foot-form is intended to simulate. Secured to this shaft 7 are pinions 8 arranged to engage and meshcwith the rack'teeth on the rack bars5' respectively. Since one end of each .rack' bar is, anchored in the member 2 rotation ofthe shaft 7 and the'pinions 8 will act to ex- I pander separate, to any desired extent within the permissible range of action, the two side members, in order to adjust the foot-formfore- {4,0 part to any desired standard width. 7

To the rear face of the side member 1 is securedaplate 11 which, near its bottom edge, is provided with a pair of projecting ears or lugs 11 to which is hingedly or pivotally jointed, by means of the rock pin 4 a link 4 that, is pivotally connected with the heel member or block 3.

' The rear end of the shaft or spindle '7 projects through this rear face and plate and, to its projecting end is secured a. thumb nut 9 that is O compounded with a ratchet 9 which also serves as afdial indicator for indicating the various width-sizes to which the forepart may be expanded. A pawl 10, pivotally mounted on the rear faceplate 11, is arranged to engage any of the width-size indicating notches not only for the purpose of indicating the width-size adjustment but also to prevent accidental contraction of the expanded forepart under the pressure of the confining forepart of the shoe into which it is expanded.

Obviously rotation of the thumb nut 9 and spindle 7 in a counter-clockwise direction serves to expand the forepart to cause its members to move into gauging contact with the opposite ball portions of the shoe in which it is inserted. In practice, when the device is assembled the spindle is turned to contract or narrow the forepart to the narrowest width-size and then, the thumb nut 9 is turned to a position where the notch marked A, indicative of the narrowest width, is engaged by the pawl when the thumb nut is securely fastened to the spindle bymeans of the fastening set screw shown in Fig. 1.

The face plate 11, while secured to one side member 1, is preferably extended across to overlap the other side member except where it may be cut out to avoid other parts carried by the outside sidev member 2.

On the inside or vertical face of the member 2 is arranged a toe extension plate 12, which has longitudinal slidable engagement with attaching screws 12 which pass through guide slots 12 in the extension plate. At its rear end this plate has a lateral extension or lug 12 projecting into a longitudinal recess and to this lug is attached a draw bar 13 extending. rearwardly through a bored passage in the member 2 and projecting some distance beyond the rear face of the member 2. The rear end'portion of this draw bar 13 isthreaded for engagement with an adjusting nut 14 and is also flattened, as shown at 13* ,-to provide a length-size scale. The piece 13 termed a draw bar is in effect a rearward extension of the member 12, the twopiece construction being adopted for convenience in assembling. When assembled the action is that of a single element. The adjusting nut 14 is held against longitudinal movement by a forked keeper or clip 15 so that rotation of the nut acts, through threaded engagement with the draw bar, to advance, and to retract, the toe extension member 12.

The function of this toe extension member is to measure the so-called extension of the shoe beyond the forward tip or end of the forepart. It is common knowledge that the last on which a shoe is made will have a length measurement of from one and one-half to perhaps four length-sizes greater than the actual length measurement of the foot for which the shoe is intended. Were this not so, the toe of the foot would thrust against the toe of the shoe and cause great discomfort. This toe extension piece, therefore, serves to measure in terms of lengthsize the amount of extension that is provided in the shoe being tested. The length-size scale 'marks on the flattened portion 13 of the draw bar will indicate exactly how much extension is present, because the rear face of the adjusting nut 14 acts as an indicator in relation to this lengthsize scale, whose initial mark should register with the rear face of this nut when the toe extension member is in retracted position flush with the forward ends of the side members. Rotation of the nut 14 in a counter-clockwise direction serves to'advance or project the tip end of the toe extension member beyond the tip end of the forepart, the amount of such projection being indicated on this length-size scale.

It will therefore be seen that provision is made for ascertaining the actual standard width-size measurement of a shoe of any given length, while the number of length-sizes of the extension in said shoe can also be accurately ascertained. As the opposite sides of the ball portionof the forepart conform to the contour of the ball portion of the human foot which it was intended to simulate, the ball of the forepart should conform to the ball of the shoe being tested when the heel block is positioned against the counter or heel portion of the shoe. Should the ball portion of the forepart, when thus positioned by the heel block, be in advance of, or to the rear of, the ball of the shoe being tested then obviously the testing device being used must be of a greater or of a less length, respectively, than the shoe being tested. Consequently, another foot-form of appropriate length should be substituted so as to secure proper correspondence between the ball length of the foot-form, that is the length from the heel to the ball joint, with the ball joint of the shoe being tested. When this is done, the 245 adjusting devices make it possible to accurately ascertain the actual width-size of the shoe as well as the number of length-size extensions present in the shoe.

' What I claim is:

1. A shoe size-testing device embracing a footfo-rm whose. forepart comprises opposite side members adapted to engage the corresponding sides of a shoe when inserted therein, adjustable means transversely connecting the side members to adjust them nearer or farther from each other without lengthwise displacement in the shoe, and a Width-size gauge correlated with the adjustable means to indicate the width-size of a shoe when the side members are moved into gauging contact with opposite sides of the shoe fore part. 4

2. A shoe size-testing device embracing a footform whose forepart comprises separate side members adapted to gauge against opposite ball portions of a shoe when inserted therein, connecting means for expanding said members into gauging contact with the opposite sides of the ball portion of the shoe without lengthwise displacement in the shoe, and a width-size scale correlated with said expanding means to indicate the width-size of the shoe being tested.

3. A foot-form for testing shoes comprising a forepart longitudinally divided into separate side members adapted to fit into the opposite ball portions of a shoe, and a heel member connected with said forepart and adapted to abut against the heel end of the shoe and thus determine the longitudinal position of the foot-form in g the shoe, and expanding means coordinated with a width-size scale for adjusting the members '01 the forepart into gauging contact with the opposite ball portions of a shoe without lengthwise displacement.

4. A foot-form for 'insertion'into a shoe. e mbracing in its construction a forepart comprising opposite sidemembers slidably connected together for transverse adjustment in relation to one another, rotatable means for expanding the side members to predetermined distances apart in coordination with a width-size scale for indieating the width size of the shoe 'when the side members are expanded into gauging contact vglith opposite sides of the ball portion ofthe s oe. I I

5. A foot-form for size-testing shoes embracing a forepart comprising two separate,.laterally adjustable, ball gauging side members, and a coacting heel engaging member, a toe gauging extension element slidably mounted on one of said side members, provided with a length extension scale and means cooperatively associated with the scale bearing extension element for advancing said toe extension element into gauging contact with the toe end of the shoe, while serving to indicate the length-size measurement on said scale.

6. A foot-form for size-testing shoes embracing in its construction a forepart comprising laterally adjustable side members interconnected by transverse rack bars, a pinion shaft extending lengthwise of said forepart and acting through pinion engagement with said rack bars to expand or to contract said forepart laterally according to the direction of rotation of said pinion shaft, a ratchet and pawl associated with said shaft, said ratchet being provided with a width-size scale coordinated with the pawl to indicate the width-size when the side members of the forepart are moved to gauging contact with the opposite ball portions of the shoe.

7. A device I or determining the length extension of a shoe embracing a sectional torepart adapted to be fitted into said shoe, a toe extension element slidably supported by said forepart, and means for adjustingsaid extension element forwardly into gauging contact with the toe end of the shoe, said adjusting means being coordinated with a. length extension indicating scale'carried by the portion of said extension adjacent to said unit substantially as described.

8. A foot form for determining the width-size and the length extension of a shoe to be tested embracing a forepart corresponding to the forepart of a shoe and comprising laterally adjustable side members adapted to be moved apart to form gauging contact with the opposite'sides of the ball portion of the shoe, a forwardly movable toe extension element slidably connected with one of said forepart members and provided at its rear part with a length-size indicating scale and an adjusting nut connected with the rear part of said toe extension element in association with said scale and acting by its rotation to advance and retract said toe extension element on the lengthsize scale, when the extension engages the toe end of the shoe.

ELMER J. BLISS. 

